MIIT Launches 2026 NEV Safety Inspection, Sets Accident Reporting Deadline

On May 21, the Equipment Industry Development Center of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued a notice launching the 2026 safety hazard inspection campaign for new energy vehicles (NEVs). The notice requires relevant manufacturers to comprehensively review product safety risks and submit their inspection findings by August 31. This inspection covers five areas, including product quality and operational monitoring safety, with a particular focus on battery systems and overall NEV quality. Regarding complete vehicles, enterprises must verify both functional safety and safety of the intended functionality (SOTIF) of combined driver assistance systems. This includes examining fault records related to sensors, decision-making, and actuation systems, as well as cases of insufficient system performance and human misuse. Based on these assessments, companies must formulate targeted inspection plans and promptly eliminate identified hazards. Additionally, manufacturers are required to assess vehicle safety risks under extreme weather conditions or special operating scenarios—such as heavy rain, high temperatures, severe cold, and high humidity—with particular attention to vehicle start-up and driving processes, battery cooling systems, and insulation systems. Effective corrective measures must be implemented based on actual usage conditions. In response to fire or combustion incidents involving NEVs, the notice specifies clear reporting deadlines: basic incident information must be reported within 24 hours (or within 12 hours if the incident results in fatalities or significant social impact); detailed vehicle information and monitoring data must be submitted within five days; and a complete technical analysis report—including root cause analysis and corrective actions—must be uploaded within 15 days. Enterprises that fail to report as required, conceal incidents, provide false information, or refuse to cooperate with investigations will be referred by the Equipment Industry Development Center to MIIT’s Department of Equipment Industry I. Depending on the severity of the violation, such enterprises may face measures including official interviews, public notifications, orders for rectification within a specified period, or even suspension or revocation of their products’ inclusion in the official “Announcement” list.